Putin hints at becoming prime minister again in 2024

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday hinted that he might return to power as prime minister — as he did in 2008 — after his time as president ends in 2024.

“I have always abided strictly and will abide to Russia’s constitution. The constitution clearly says no more than two consecutive terms (are allowed),” Putin said when asked at the Saint Petersburg Forum if he would leave power in 2024.

“This is now my second term in a row,” the Russian leader said.

In 2008, after serving two consecutive terms as president, Putin’s ally Dmitry Medvedev became president while Putin moved to the post of prime minister before returning to the presidency four years later.